This invention relates generally to depth mapping systems and particularly to a system wherein a plurality of depths of a submerged surface are simultaneously displayed.
In mapping the depth of an ocean bottom or of an object of interest submerged within a water body. It is particularly desirable that any depths developed as a result of such a mapping system be simultaneously presented as a family of depths which, taken as a whole, present an integrated picture of a preselected area of the water bottom. One example of such a system used to determine depth in an ocean body utilizes a pulsed laser system and a single aperture receiver which sequentially pulses and then processes the signal information to provide a discrete piece of depth information. Succeeding items of information are then sequentially provided by further laser pulses and corresponding processing. Such systems are often susceptible to pulse variations within the laser system which can introduce significant errors into the resultant information.